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A lovely smelling bubble bath which gives no bubbles!

Whilst I originally joined Dooyoo and started reviewing for the site as a way of making a little extra cash, I actually think it's ended up costing me more as I'm forever reading about products, particularly beauty products, which I then feel the need to try. Products from Champneys and Sanctuary are ones which I often walked past in Boots but, after reading so many rave reviews on this site, are ones I've been wanting to try for a while now. So, when Boots knocked all of their Christmas gift sets down to half price this year I decided to get myself a couple of sets from these two brands to finally try some products for myself.

I bought myself a Champneys set containing four miniature versions of products from the Exotic Collection one being this Bubble Heaven (which Dooyoo have decided to call 'bubble float', it is the same product though). I have a rather small 50ml bottle however this is sold individually in 400ml bottles and is available from Champneys website and Boots for £12. For what is basically a bottle of bubble bath, this does seem rather expensive to me and is the main reason I waited until these little gift sets went to half price in Boots before sampling any Champneys products. The bottle is at least a decent size though and if it was as good as it looked then I wouldn't mind forking out £12 for a bottle from time to time.

The bottle is very luxurious looking and frankly just having it sat at the side of my bath makes me feel like I'm pampering myself. The clear bottle allows you to see the pearly white bubble bath contained which has a slight golden shimmer to it and looks very pretty. The gold lid and golden Champneys logo stamped across it add to this elegant look and the product name and description written in white lettering complete the look. The bottle, without even experiencing the product, really is very nice.

It is, however, what's inside that counts and when this is said to contain 'coconut milk, papaya and ylang ylang' what's inside sounds very nice indeed! Unscrewing the lid reveals the scent which further heightens expectations of this product. The fruity papaya is quite obviously the prominent scent in this; it's very sweet but in a more subtle than headache inducing way. It is what I would associate with a 'bathroom smell' and exactly the type of scent I want to bathe in and have filling up my bathroom.

The product is quite thick and tipping the bottle upside releases very little of it. To get it out I find it best to give the bottle a gentle squeeze which eases it out a little quicker. I tipped a blob about the size of an olive under the running water of my bath which I usually find is enough with most bubble baths to get decent amount of bubbles going. This wasn't the case here though; my first blob didn't really give me any bubbles at all. So I tried adding another olive sized blob under the running water and, again, not a lot happened. I continued to add more, adjusting the temperature of the water I was pouring it under, wafting my hand about in the water trying to produce some bubbles and, nothing. Eventually I got a few clear bubbles emerging from the water but these just floated towards the back of the bath tub before popping. I'd used nearly the entire bottle of this stuff, there was about an inch of product left in the bottom by the time I'd finished and got no results whatsoever. Pretty disappointing! I've no idea how much of this you'd have to use to actually get any bubbles.

The beautiful scent this has does fill the bathroom when in use though which is about the only positive side effect using this actually has. The fruity but gentle fragrance filled my bathroom quickly and lingered for a fair while too which made me feel thoroughly relaxed even if my bubbles were missing. Regardless, this is still a bubble bath which produces no bubbles which would be rather rubbish it were only £1, if I'd have paid £12 for this I'd be feeling quite angry really.

Personally I won't be bothering with this again and I'd urge anyone to keep well away too! The only real good thing about it is the scent and everything else from the Exotic Retreat Collection shares this scent and have much more pleasing results so I shall be sticking to those in future.

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A delightful bubble bath product.

The product

This is a bubble bath from Champneys. When I first started using this it was just known as 'Exotic bubble float' but is now known as 'exotic retreat bubble heaven'.

The packaging

This comes in a glass jar with a screw top lid. There is a thick circular disc of cardboard style packaging underneath the lid that helps to ensure that none of this is wasted. The packaging looks luxurious and the new branded packaging has a little more gold colouring used on it and it feels like it has been upgraded slightly from the previous packaging that they were using.

I have been using Champneys bath products for a couple of years now and despite dropping them numerous times in the bath, on the floor and when sorting the recycling I have never had one that has broken or even chipped and similarly I have never damaged any of my other surfaces.

How to use

Until recently when using this I have just opened the lid, waited ages for the thick liquid to run down the inside of the bottle and then cursed when I have used up a massive big gloppy blob that I have to run around the bath several times to dissolved properly, however, since reading a comment on someone's review I have taken to using a teaspoon to dispense as much or as little as I require. This is quite thick so takes a while to be dissolved properly so I usually swish my hand around in the water to increase the bubbles.

The price

A 400ml bottle is available from Boots for £12.00. I do not recall a time when I have ever paid full price for Champneys products. I usually get them cheaper by combining different special offers or buying a large amount direct from the Champneys website so that I may get free delivery! Also, just after Christmas I usually find that the Champneys gift sets are reduced in Boots stores quite considerably so I always pick a few of those up too!

Overall opinion

I absolutely love Champneys products and over the past few years I have been slowly working my way through all of the products. This is a delightful bath product and it gives a decent amount of bubbles, like all the bath products in the range really, and is one that I have bought on a few occasions now.

The exotic range was one of the first ranges that I tried and this was one of the first products after receiving it a few years ago for my Birthday or Christmas (can't remember!).

I love the scent of this bubble heaven, it has hints of coconut and I can tell that there is papaya in this too as it has a real unusual scent to it that works so well at making me feel relaxed and refreshed once I have laid in the bath for a while. I can feel myself really relaxing when I have run this in to my running water and I feel like my skin looks and feels fantastic afterwards. Sometimes I use an exotic body cream also to give it a real layered effect and this is particularly nice at bedtime when my husband often comments on how wonderful I smell while we are cuddled up to go to sleep.

I am sure that at £12.00 some people will feel that this is overpriced, however, if you pick it up on special offer and give it a try you will most likely fall in love with this, and the whole Champneys range, just as I did!

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Champneys Exotic Bubble Float

Champneys Exotic Bath Float:Champneys, {www.champneys.com}, make some of my favourite bath and skincare products. I am reviewing my way through all of the Champneys products I own!

Champneys Bath Floats, {Bubble Bath}, come in really stunning looking 400ml glass jars with gold plastic screw lids. The Exotic Bath Float comes in a frosted glass jar allowing you to see the creamy-gold bath float inside. I like the glass jars not only because they look simple and sophisticated in my bathroom, even amongst all the clutter, but the fact that are re-usable and recyclable. I use them as tea-light holders for outside and also for storing things like buttons and ribbons for my crafting.This is actually the first Bath Float I tried and I was lured in not only by the fragrance of coconut oil, papaya and palmarosa, which is gorgeous, but also by the frankly stunning, lustrous sheen the product has. It looks like molten mother of pearl, it really is pretty to look at. The scent used here is quite heady and floral but all the women I have showed it too love the smell from cutesy-kawaii girls to the mother-in-law so it's a pretty timeless fragrance.

The instructions on the back instruct you to pour a "generous" amount under running water but I would be a little more light handed as you don't really need so much to produce a wonderful amount of rich, creamy bubbles and to fill your home with the wonderful scent. I have used this in my {reasonably large} 2 bed flat and my Mum's 3 bed house and in both it literally fills every room with the fragrance!As if that was enough reasons to use this bath float the effect it has on the water is great, it makes it shimmer as if liquid gold had been added to the bath and also makes the water so incredibly soft and silky. Now I don't mind cleaning glitter/sparkle off my bath or being glittery myself but it's worth noting that this doesn't make your bath look as if a unicorn dissolved in it or leave you looking like a Christmas decoration!

After bathing in this I find my skin is left super-soft and lightly scented which is a massive plus as I have annoying dry skin. Even the other half notices the difference so it must be good.At £12 a pop these Bath Floats aren't cheap but I only buy them when they are half price which makes them compare favourably against Lush which is my other bath related addiction! I'm a fan of buying own-brand or cheap alternatives where I can but for bath products I find the old adage, "you get what you pay for", really applies especially if you have problem skin.